When the series first aired in 1991, the show was called The Maury Povich Show and was produced by MoPo Productions in association with Paramount Domestic Television. The show adopted the title Maury in the 1995–1996 season. The show was then revamped in the 1998–1999 season, when Studios USA (now NBCUniversal) took over production. However, MoPo continues to co-produce with NBCUniversal. For the series' first 18 seasons, it was taped in New York City, but beginning with Season 19, the show has been taped in the Stamford Media Center in Stamford, Connecticut.[1]Maury is one of four NBC Universal syndicated properties to make the move to Connecticut, joining the former Chicago-based Jerry Springer and Steve Wilkos shows. The fourth, the syndicated Deal or No Deal, is no longer in production. The Trisha Goddard Show became the fourth show in production with NBC Universal. As of 2007, NBC owned and operated stations no longer air "Maury".

On September 17, 2012, during the premiere of its 22nd season, episodes of Maury began airing in 1080i fullscreen. On March 26, 2013, Maury was renewed for an additional three years until 2018.

The show in its early years covered topics of a serious nature, including gang warfare.

In recent years, the most common topic (namely from 2008 onwards) is paternity testing, followed by lie-detector testing. Abusive relationships and "out-of-control" teen girls are approximately tied for a distant third. Guest update shows seem to be fourth. Shows with a topic that is not one of the listed four (i.e., missing children, transsexuals, and "caught on tape" moments) are rare, and only appear a 1–2 times a year.

Paternity tests[edit]

One of the most famous topics associated with Maury is paternity testing: a mother appears on-air attempting to prove (or disprove, in some cases) that a man is the biological father of her child or children. Often the mother will bring the child or children to the studio to prove her claim's validity to Maury, the audience, and the accused father. She will often say "I'm 100%/1000% (or some other high amount) sure he is the father!" Images of the father and child are displayed on the screen. She is occasionally accompanied by her mother who is furious that her grandchild is being denied. In most cases, the accused father is hostile towards the accusing mother, giving various reasons (such as infidelity and sterility) why the child cannot be related to him, often saying "The baby doesn't look like me" and sometimes "I can't have kids", "She never told me she was pregnant", or "She cheated on me". Sometimes the accused father believes that the accusing mother is just after money. The accused father is occasionally accompanied by his current girlfriend, fiancee, wife or other family member to support his claim.

In other episodes, a man who has been a devoted dad for his child(ren)'s whole life/lives discovers that he might not be the biological father but might have suffered a paternity fraud (he discovers this either by infidelity suspicions/proof, or the wife may admit it to the husband on the show) and turn to a paternity test for proof.

After the initial accusations, Maury sits the opposing parties down to read the results of a paternity test that had been performed before the show's taping. Before reading the results, Maury asks the man what he plans to do if the child is, in fact, his, and the man almost always responds by saying that he will provide for the child in that case. Maury then says "When it comes to [age and name of child], [man's name], 'You are the father!' or 'You are not the father!'" After the results are revealed, the parties react accordingly; when the man is proven to be the father, the mother often will celebrate, whereas if the man is proven not to be the father, he celebrates, occasionally high fiving audience members while the mother runs backstage crying with Maury following her to console her, saying "We'll be glad to help you find the father". A follow-up episode often checks up on the story months later. Mothers often return on future episodes to test more men.

Polygraph tests[edit]

Some episodes of the series deal with infidelity in relationships. Despite the findings of the United States Supreme Court that "There is simply no consensus that polygraph evidence is reliable,"[3] the accused individual is often attached to a polygraph machine and asked questions about the topic at hand (or will sometimes admit secrets to his/her partner). The person who suspects his or her partner is cheating will explain to Maury his or her suspicions then a video is often shown of the accused partner telling their side of the story and denying the accusations. He or she then comes on stage being loudly booed by the audience. When the results are revealed by Maury, he typically says "You were asked if you had sexual intercourse with any other woman during your relationship with (significant other's name). You said no, and the lie detector determined that was a lie (or 'You are telling the truth')". On occasion, Ralph Barberi, the lie detector administrator, will appear and explain that the person had "significant reactions" to one or more questions. In rare circumstances, the accused individual would admit his/her affairs while being tested (result: "You admitted to our lie detector administrator you've done so."), or if the person refuses to answer a specific question. Other times, an individual will maintain their innocence despite the test results and ask to re-take the lie detector test.

In some cases, Maury and the show's producers would settle the accused in a "green room," where either a buddy or a sexy decoy would appear as another guest of the show in order to get to the whole truth.

Shocking Sex Secrets[edit]

Some episodes of the series deal with individuals who wish to reveal a secret to their loved ones. The segment usually begins with the person wishing to tell the secret on stage with Maury and he/she goes through the story with the loved one being secluded backstage. Next, the wife/girlfriend/husband/boyfriend is brought out, and soon after the secret is told. The wife/girlfriend/husband/boyfriend will often walk or run off the stage, with the person telling the secret chasing after them apologizing. Maury follows them to bring them back on the stage. However, it may occasionally result in a positive reaction from the wife/girlfriend/husband/boyfriend. A video is often shown of the third party involved in the secret apologizing and asking for forgiveness before he/she comes on stages being loudly booed by the audience.

In some segments, the third party involved in the secret may also appear on the show. Secrets revealing a man may not be the father of their children can sometimes result in a paternity test.

Controlling and abusive men[edit]

Some episodes in the series also deal with abusive relationships where men believe it is their right to control and abuse the women they love. In these episodes, women currently in relationships with controlling and abusive men appear on the show for help. These men often say things such as "It's a man's world" or "A woman is here to serve a man", and some say they were taught by their fathers to control women and teach their children likewise. A lot of the times they will emotionally and physically abuse women if they feel the women are not following their rules (i.e. when they can and can't see their family and friends, not allowing them to see other men, how they are to serve the men their food, how the men are to be addressed as, when and where they can sleep, etc.). In some episodes, the men may also inspect their woman's body on a consistent basis to make sure their wife or girlfriend does not cheat on them. These men are also brought to the studio and publicly rebel against their girlfriend, fiance, or wife and refuse to listen to their pleas.

In an attempt to help both the women who are being controlled and to stop the men's controlling ways, Povich brings in a variety of guests, from women who were previously in an abusive relationship to mothers of daughters in abusive relationships; in one episode, a former guest, a man who changed his controlling ways after his first appearance on the show, was brought in. After the show, the men are transported to a location in an attempt to scare them into acting differently; mostly the place was a funeral home (the abused women are in coffins to appear as if they are deceased); other times the place was a homeless shelter. In a few episodes, the places were prisons. Usually, the tables are turned and they are made to follow the rules (i.e. serve the women food in a different manner than their abusive manner).

When the men return to the studio, they often apologize for their behavior. Occasionally, couples return because the men, who stop the abuse, are suspected of cheating on the same women they beat.

"Out of control" teenage girls[edit]

In these episodes, distressed mothers or family members of delinquent teenage girls turn to Maury for help. These teenagers often have issues dealing with drug addiction, promiscuity, prostitution, shoplifting, gang involvement, or the strong desire to become pregnant at a young age. More simply, the show usually deals with violent teens or teens who wish to have a baby (sometimes both). These teens are brought to the studio, where they publicly rebel against their parents/guardians/foster carers and refuse to listen to their pleas. Usually, they'll tell the audience to "Shut Up!", for many reasons. Often the girls wear revealing clothing.

Former prostitutes and teen moms, as well as motivational speakers and police officers often share their stories with the girls, or attempt to motivate them to improve themselves. In recent episodes, Maury recruits a combination of Trisha Goddard (Conflict Resolution Expert), Raphael B. Johnson (Motivational Speaker), and Dave Vitalli (Special Ops Expert) to help reform the teens. Afterward, the girls are shipped to a location in an attempt to scare them into acting differently; sometimes these places have been prisons, other times the girls have been forced to partake in boot camp activities, and often are shown that they could end up dead or homeless if they don't change their ways. Teens wanting babies are sent to "Baby Boot Camp" and are forced to take care of young children.

When the girls return to the studio, the majority of them appear wearing better clothing, apologize for their behavior, and, in cases where they want babies, realize that they are not ready to be parents.

Transsexuals[edit]

In these episodes, a group of ten to twelve guests who look like beautiful women (but in reality, some of these guests were born male) would parade on the set in revealing clothes (i.e., skimpy dresses, lingerie, swimsuits, etc.) while Maury would ask the audience if the guest in question was a man or a woman. Towards the end of the show, the guest would reveal his/her physical sex.

Occasionally, there would be shows in which some of the guests who appear male are actually biologically female.

Caught on Tape Moments[edit]

Maury, namely in recent years, has begun showcasing clip shows. These shows often involve other famous news anchors appearing and commentating on them. Also, bizarre medical cases have been shown as well that show amazing survivals.

Joey Greco, the host of Cheaters, and later, Clark Gable III make occasional appearances to showcase moments from their show.

Missing Children[edit]

Maury has also done episodes focusing on children who have gone missing. These episodes contain an interview and explanation with/by the parent(s) and/or other family of the missing children, then shows a dramatization of the events causing that child's disappearance. Appropriate phone numbers that one should call if he/she spots or knows of the child are also shown.

Transformations[edit]

These types of episodes focus on a man or woman who used to be very different and have now changed their lives. Usually, the man or woman who has changed his/her life will show what that life had been like before it changed. Then, the person will walk onto the stage, showing off a new look. One of the people who primarily hated his/her old look will then come out on to the stage, and the person who had changed will briefly "hide" from the stage. Then, the person who had transformed will walk back on to the stage, and the once-opposing person will then react accordingly.

Most of the time this will be a woman who has changed her life, but men who have changed their lives have also sometimes appeared.

Backstage Drama[edit]

At the end of most episodes, some of the guests on the show are shown backstage arguing with each other and talking with executive producer Paul Faulhaber.

Guest updates[edit]

Maury periodically updates viewers on past guests and reveal what happened to a guest after the show (i.e., if a man is still raising a child proven not to be his, or if a couple stayed together after a partner was proven to be cheating)

At the end of each year, Maury does a top 10 countdown of the most memorable guests of the year with updates on each guest.

Phobias[edit]

Maury would also do episodes where people confront their fears and phobias on stage, with the help of Gary Coxe or Boris Cherniak. The most recent phobia episode originally aired on August 6, 2009.

Studio audience members obtain free tickets to the taping of Maury via the show's official website.

Censorship[edit]

Maury is syndicated on various stations in the United States at various times of the day, whether in the morning, afternoon, or late evening. All syndicated episodes of Maury are edited for content for broadcast regardless of broadcast time to comply with U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulations regarding the broadcast of indecency and obscenity. Profanity, guests' last names or other unusual language on the program is bleeped out. In fact, this can extend as far as to remove a group of many expletives or even of an entire sentence, but making some speech incomprehensible. In addition, nudity and the partial exposure of breasts or buttocks are pixelized out.

Internship Promoting and Telemarketing[edit]

Two well publicized advertising methods on Maury relate to the hiring of interns as well as polling the television audience with the allure of "valuable offers". The latter is also a promotional tactic used on the show Divorce Court.

The show is known for promoting an in-house "intern program", encouraging college students to apply for employment. In a 2010, a Department of Education report indicated:

The talk show "Maury" is abusing government programs sponsored by the Department of Education. This production is attempting to prove that there is an overwhelming demand for interns and has solicited applications from hundreds of different institutions of higher learning. The interns are almost never hired; however, the production has applied under several clauses for government funding under claims that a large number of internships have been granted.[4]

Maury also encourages viewers to call in for on-line polls, promising that they will receive "valuable offers" upon doing so. Callers are generally prompted to participate in a telemarketing purchase or in some cases sign up for a pyramid scheme or a "Get rich quick" program.

Criticism[edit]

Some critics denounce Maury as being worse than other similar talk shows, such as The Jerry Springer Show. Like such shows, it uses guests' serious problems for the entertainment of the viewing audience, but treated with an insincere sympathy. Whitney Matheson wrote about the show in her USA Today column, "Povich's talk show is, without a doubt, the worst thing on television. Period. Don't be fooled by the pressed shirt and pleated khakis; Maury is miles farther down the commode than Jerry Springer."[5] This was also mocked on a 2002 South Park episode called "Freak Strike".

Spin-off and inspiration[edit]

On February 27, 2012, it was announced that Maury regular Trisha Goddard would be receiving her own spin-off series The Trisha Goddard Show, which premiered in syndication in fall 2012.[6] The show aired until May 2014.

Though not a spin-off, it has been reported that the tabloid talk/court showPaternity Court, which premiered on September 23, 2013, was inspired by Maury.[7]